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James Taylor Slade (Earth-RSR II)
In the world of RSR II, superhumans have risen throughout time, as the universe gets older. Most prominently, superhumans became a force for both good and evil forces near the World War III's happening, until its end. Superhuman groups, such as the Avengers and their original counterpart, the Winter Guard, were employed during World War III to win the greatest war mankind has ever seen. After the war ended, superhumans, who were originally employed to fight for the government become superheroes, while others who fall into the other side, travelled down the path of darkness. Superhuman beings that existed both on Earth or worlds beyond the humans' homeworld also stepped in, seeing how beneficial Earth is to their causes. And all of this started in 1983, 12.00 AM, when a bank robbery occured. The perperator, however, was no ordinary human. Dubbed "Hellfire", James Taylor Slade was the one true cause why the international world fears beings with superpowers, before they know that some of them can be good people. An automobile shop owner, as well as an arsonist, vandalist, and a thief by nature, he is the grandson of wild-west superhero, Carter Slade AKA "El Diablo". Carter once struck a deal with the demon Mephisto in order to save his wife, to ensure his unborn son's birth. This was done due to the fact that he accidentally thought that a gang of demon-worshippers was just a bunch of outlaws with no morale, and attacked them. And the deal was then passed down through the ages, to different people. But, the true demon who embodies this "Spirit of Vengeance" was Zarathos, and sought to purify Carter of Mephisto's false-empowerment, and replace it with his, and it succeeded. Due to this, Carter was turned immortal, and in the 20th century, James was born from his son. Deciding to teach James responsibility, Carter gave him a portion of his powers, allowing him to channel hellfire from various objects (but he prefers chains). But he failed, and James still turned to the life of crime. James then made a name for himself, his power only rumours initially, until the day of change happened. Robbing a bank with his new gang, he showed the public Americans that someone like him with powers do exist, and can change the course of history. For several hours, legions of cops were dispatched, until he's taken down. News about him appeared in some time, but after some days, no newspapers or television news showed his news. In fact, he's taken in the custody of the US Government, and later, the newly formed ARGUS. While interrogated, he wouldn't spill any information, but he died afterwards, when his Ghost Rider powers truly manifested, through his burning head. In fear, he was killed before he can fully transform into a Ghost Rider. Although he died, his grandfather lived on, still in his Ghost Rider form. Also, his appearance to the Ameircan public would be remembered as "Why It All Happened". Biography Writhing Chains The descendant of the wild-west hero, Carter Slade, also known as El Diablo, James was born to an abusive father, who was allegedly got his initial personality "transformed" into a hot-headed, vengeful man. This trait was passed down to James himself, and all of this apparently happened when Carter was freed from the false empowerment of Mephisto, over his Ghost Rider powers from the true maker of such incredible power, Zarathos, the Spirit of Vengeance, and one of the most influential, yet underestimated demon. James' conflict with his father grew heavily throughout his years of living on this planet, with the two's equally-rated "hot-head-level". But James was the first one to be "broke", and he killed his father when he's 16. Although a hot-headed person, James managed to set an automobile shop in Hell's Kitchen, Manhattan, named Wheels of Hell, which in the future, is used by all three Ghost Riders (Johnny Blaze, Alejandra Blaze, and Carter Slade himself) as their main base of operations, or at least, a safehouse. Hell's Kitchen itself would be the main area of Johnny Blaze's (the main Ghost Rider) action. While he sould be a person to be disliked by the public there, due to the rough neighborhood there, and the presence of many gangs (poor people too), many people liked him, and he fell into a life of crime. Becoming an enforcer for Wilson Fisk's gang/"empire" (with Wilson later known as the Kingpin, a villain to many street-level heroes, Rider included), he rose through the ranks, until he decided to break away and make his own gang. Kingpin's gang later evolved to a criminal empire itself. Hellfire But before he can try to get members for his gang, his grandfather appeared in front of his apartment room's door, telling him that he's going to change him. JT wasn't surprised at first, but he got blacked out when Carter punched his face, after he swore at him. Waking up, he found himself, laid on a church chair, near a graveyard. When he woke up, Carter told him to calm down, and told him of his story as "El Diablo" and "Ghost Rider", for at least an hour. Allegedly, instead of being amazed in a good way, JT's seeds of newer grounds of criminality surfaced when he heard that being a "Ghost Rider" means that you can have superpowers. JT proceeded to lie to agree to his grandfather's "terms of usage" with his later-newfound-powers. His grandfather, unable to detect lie, then granted a portion of his power to JT. JT was amazed when he found out that he can set a shovel on fire, though not destroying it. He tried to use the hellfire-shovel, but it broke immediately when the hellfire got turned off due to his lack of mastery. Luckily, Carter trained him to use it. In the process, he began to use a chain as his weapon. "Hellfire chains" are also one of the most notable icons of a Ghost Rider in the future. After three months of training, finally JT was "ready" to get the full powers of a Ghost Rider. Carter himself wanted to free himself of the "curse", passing it to JT. JT, that time still only capable of lighting chains on fire, was about to be granted all the powers of a Ghost Rider, he immediately "retaliated", punching him in the face before running to a motorcycle near the graveyard. He then proceeded to escape from the church complex, returning to his hometown. 1983, 12.00 AM After escaping from his grandfather, he returned to the Wheels of Hell. Seeing that some of Kingpin's men tried to destroy it, as a punishment for his insolence, he immediately showed off his new power and killed the men, leaving one alive to tell the story. At the same time, nearby gangsters noticed this, and JT convinced them to join his side. This was the leading path to the event that'll change the history of enhanced people on this planet. After gathering a group of gangsters to rob a bank, in broad daylight with no fear, due to JT's powers, he and his friends then repaired a large van, stock up ammunition, and bring in some big guns. JT simply needed his chain. 11.30 AM, JT and his friends took off, going to one of the biggest banks in New York. 11.45 AM, he arrived at scene. His crew opened fire on the security guards of the bank, killing some innocents, too, which JT didn't care about. JT then proceeded to dispatch two officers. In the process, he revealed his powers publicly. He and his gang managed to break through the bank's vault. filled with money, using JT's flaming hellfire chain. After they emptied the vault, bringing the money to their van, legions of cop cars arrived on scene, with the officers telling JT and his gang to stand down. But JT knew that thye're in fear, with reports coming in about a man with a flaming chain. JT, smirking, then brought down his chain's wrath, nearly decimating the entire force of cops, which numbered around 25 that time. However, a miracle happened. JT's calves were shot by a rookie police officer, which was lucky that time. After so, coincidentally, more cops arrived on scene and managed to take down JT and his gang, disarming him of his chains. During this entire event, all television news broadcast were filled with JT's show-off of powers. The Extinghuished Flame For several days, the American people were shocked of JT's appearance, and while his presence was tried to be hid away, it failed and now people suspected that there are more of them out there, and one day they'll take over America. Though Gerald Ford tried to calm the public down, all attempts failed, and as such, another way was devised. Under his own orders, ARGUS was formed, in order to not just handle JT's case, but to handle future problems like this one. He did realize that this will happen again in the future, and knew that with his appearance, people like him would be braver to show themselves to the public. With Ford's initiative, all the news programmes in America never showed news about JT's incident after the said event, and James himself was taken to the Pentagon, under the new ARGUS' supervision, and was interrogated. While he did tell that his powers was said to stem from a "Spirit of Vengeance" (his knowledge of such thing was miniscule, even with his grandpa's pep-talk). When asked about whether or not there'll be more of people like him out there, he nearly spoke of his grandfather, until something happened. When he's about to tell his grandpa's name, suddenly he felt a "rush of blood" inside his head, and a feeling of being burnt. At the same time, the ARGUS personnels there, the president included, smelled a strong smell of fire and ash. Some seconds later, suddenly, his head bursted into flames, and his head began to degenerate into a skull. This was when his Ghost Rider powers manifested. His grandfather didn't complete bestowing him such powers, but the seeds were already planted. In the process, his containment cell completely melted, with his high body temperatures in the transformation. In fear, the president's guards then opened fire on him, killing him. Shocked, Ford ordered his men to bury him, but with an empty gravestone, with no writings, but a logo of a burning skull. Powers and Abilities JT's powers stem from the bestowage of the Ghost Rider powers by his grandfather, Carter Slade. Carter's Ghost Rider powers however, manifested later in JT's body. A trickster and a wickedly creative criminal, while JT didn't have much experience in using his powers on the field, his training by his grandfather allowed him to use his powers effectively. The only thing that actually hindered his mastery is his cocky nature. When his Ghost Rider powers manifested, he gained the same abilities and powers as any other Ghost Riders... if he's still alive that time. The power his grandfather bestowed, however, is limited, to only one power. He can manipulate hellfire, the very flames that burn in Hell, but only to the extent of setting objects on fire. While he can set other things on fire, except vehicles and other objects that're too complicated, he chooses a chain as his primary weapon. While his chain's lit up, he can slice through a cop car's door. And although he's relatively inexperienced, he can actually conjure a large hellfire-hurricane by swinging his chain in a circular motion, and unleash a shockwave by slamming it down. Other than his hellfire manipulation powers, he has no other powers. *'Hellfire Manipulation' Personality A brash, troubled youngster, JT's personality even during his childhood would show that he's going to be a thug and not a good person in the future. A unique fact was that apparently, this turn of personality resulted in due to Zarathos' "curse". Though not a real curse, it actually changes the personality of Carter Slade's son into a hot-headed person, which is one of Zarathos' traits (metaphorically, and literally). But, on the brighter side, JT's a man that always take an opportunity when it's come. Other than that, he's nothing more than a common crook, but with a strong will. JT's not a man of his words, but when it comes to crime, everything means something to him, and he'll do anything to gain money and power, as well as fame. He's no slouch, either, but not too smart on the other hand. He might be powerful with his hellfire power, but carelessness resulted in his capture by the US Government... Trivia *While Kal-El and his fellow superhuman comrades seemingly debuted earlier than Hellfire, due to Russia's "public secrecy" (only revealing the metahumans to their own country), Slade was the one to be revealed first to the international world. And with the intense fear of what he could do, he's killed later on. Though later it's revealed that he's in ARGUS' custody, but died as well, anyway. *JT's original comic name was "JT James", in which it stood for James Taylor James. In the comics, he's the descendant of the Phantom Rider, Carter Slade. But, to make the name less stranger (notice the repetitive "James") and directly reference his still-living ancestor, his back name's changed to Slade. Category:Males Category:Former Villains Category:Neutral Characters Category:Pyrokinesis Category:Earth-RSR II Category:Black Hair Category:Criminals Category:Driving Category:Thieves Category:Weapons Experts Category:Deceased